Injustices Within the Visa System

Injustices Within the Visa System

Depending on where you are from and where you are traveling, you may need to obtain a visa to get there; this is common knowledge. However, the system that regulates the distribution of visas is extremely prejudiced, and most do not even know. The injustice fueled by the biased system of mobility scores creates an obstacle impossible to overcome for citizens in third world countries. They are denied their right to be global citizens solely because of who they are and where they live. Let us look into it.

Mobility Scores

Many factors contribute to the reasoning behind the unfair decision to deny someone a visa that is unfortunately made every day. Every country's passport has a mobility score, which defines how mobile a citizen of that country can be around the world. The mobility score determines what countries the holder of the passport is going to need a visa to enter or if they may travel there freely. The higher the rating, the more places a citizen can visit. For example, the Spanish, French, and German passports all have mobility scores of 173, whereas Libya, Tunisia, Morocco, and Egypt have scores between 49 and 77. These scores are determined by several aspects but heavily influenced by the economy of the country. The top seven economies of the world are the US, the UK, Japan, Germany, France, Italy, and Canada and not so coincidentally all rank within the top 10 strongest passports. This proves the visa system is a business, and they only want to award visas to people who have the money to fuel and give back to the American economy. So one can collect that the idea of racism and prejudice is further encouraged by the visa system.

How to Obtain a Visa

Starting from step one in the process, to be given a visa, you must show evidence that you will return to your country after your visit, you will stay in the USA for the duration of your travels, and you have enough money both to sustain yourself in the USA and return to your country of residence. Upon your application for a visa, you must submit the following, a nonimmigrant visa electronic application form, a passport valid for travel to the United States, a photograph taken within the last six months, and a receipt showing payment of your US$160 non-refundable nonimmigrant visa application processing fee. Millions waste money and time on visa interviews every year in countries where they are not permitted to travel freely, all with no success. They go in different combinations of family members, willing to leave behind their loved ones just to be allowed to visit another country, only to be rejected by the visa interviewers.

A Better Understanding

In order to understand the struggles that are faced every day by citizens of third world countries and minority groups imagine this situation: 

You are a middle-aged Arab woman living in Tunisia, a small Muslim country in northern Africa. You have a husband and two kids, a house, a stable job. When you were younger, your sister moved to the USA with her husband, and they are living and have started a family there. Her daughter's graduation is this year, and you would love to go to it, so you decide to apply for a visa. You complete everything and go to your interview. A month later, you have been denied because there "was not enough reason for you to return to your country." You have your whole life in Tunisia, yet they still rejected you. All 4 of your other siblings lead similar lifestyles as you and all applied, and we also all rejected for the same reasoning. Even your 70-year-old mother applied, and they denied her too! Simply because you are all Tunisian. 

Now take the same scenario, but you are a citizen in Germany. A husband, two kids, a house, and a stable job, wanting to visit your sister in the USA. You would not even need to get a visa! You could just get on a plane and go simply because you are German and not Tunisian.

This issue has affected too many and won't change until awareness is spread. The politicians who are running this country have forgotten that 400 short years ago, they also were immigrants coming from Europe. They stole this land from the natives and left Europe in search of independence, yet they will not allow others from different regions in the world to live this dream of liberty in freedom on the same land. 

By: Amany Bouali